Records

Carefully combing through its financial records for last year, like so many other energy companies these days, Northern Border Partners LP found a discrepancy related to some gathering and processing hedges. The company said it will have to revise downward previously estimated results for the fourth quarter and full year 2001.

For the fifth quarter in a row, the Royal Dutch/Shell group announced record earnings 23% higher than those of a year earlier. Outgoing Chairman Mark Moody-Stuart said higher gas prices, better refining margins and increased liquefied natural gas volumes all contributed to the growth. Net income also set a record.

For the fifth quarter in a row, the Royal Dutch/Shell group announced record earnings 23% higher than those of a year earlier. Outgoing Chairman Mark Moody-Stuart said higher gas prices, better refining margins and increased liquefied natural gas volumes all contributed to the growth. Net income also set a record.

Union Gas said the Dawn gas market hub in Ontario set newrecords in 2000 for the volume and number of title transfers. Thehub recorded over 2.7 Tcf of title transfers last year, more thandouble the 1999 total of 1.3 Tcf. On average about 7.6 Bcf/d of gaschanged hands up from 3.7 Bcf in 1999.

Spot price records could be tested again this week in SouthernCalifornia, where the market yesterday nearly mimicked what tookplace in early December when prices reached a new record at$58.76/MMBtu. SoCal started the day around $20 and then soaredabove $40 before coming back down to the low $30s. Strong heatingand power generation demand and stringent balancing requirements onSouthern California Gas’ system due to low storage levels, promptedthe market move.

Dominion Resources experienced significant growth in the year2000 — due in part to its recent merger with Consolidated NaturalGas (CNG) — and it forecasts an even stronger 2001. The companyposted consolidated operating earnings excluding special items for2000 of $787 million ($3.33 per share), reflecting a 10.6% increasein earnings per share over 1999’s output of $577 million ($3.01 pershare). Special items include a subtraction of $351 million dollarsrelated to CNG merger costs and the write-down of Dominion Capitalassets.

Records are made to be broken, or so the saying goes. Whileprices continued to dive Friday from the Rockies/Southwesteastward, the California and Pacific Northwest markets kept revvingit like never before. Malin and the PG&E citygate hit the newall-time high mark of $61.

As spot gas prices in California were breaking records again Friday with $61/MMBtu quotes being reported at PG&E’s Citygate, some state officials already started dubbing the upcoming heating season as California’s “winter of discontent.”

Despite notching new annual volume records for the fifth consecutive year since NGI started ranking gas marketers, the pace of volume growth among the top 20 North American gas and power marketers has shown some signs of decline.